Transcription

4, Oil Company. He pointed out that the Gulf Oil Company was one of the parties interested in the I.P.C. through the American portion of the shares of the latter, while the Standard Oil Company of California was not# On this point Mr. Fraser explained that the A.P.Q.C, felt that they had a legitimate grievance against the behayiour of American oil interests in this area since the ?/ar. When, after the Yfar, the Americans and the French. ?/ere admitted to participation in the I.P.C, the A.P.O.C. had understood that the American oil interests would then be satisfied with their share in the I.P.C. This, however, had not he en so, since the Standard Oil Company of California, had later appeared and obtained oil concessions in Bahrein and Hasa; they now threatened to come in also at Qatar. The Standard Oil Company of California (now established in Bahrein and Hasa} was an entirely different Company from the Standard Oil Company of New Jersey (interested in the Iraq Petroleum Company) but there were occasions -when these large American groups appeared to work in sympathy with one another. Mr. Fraser suggested that the position would be very much simplified and delay avoided if the same procedure could be followed here as he had suggested in Qatar, i.e. if H.lvI.G. would be good enough to examine the draft concession at this end and make suggestions before it was presented to the Sheikh. He sincerely trusted that the Company could look for the support of His Majesty's Goyernment. Mr. Praser then offered to give further explanations/

The volume also contains notes of meetings and correspondence regarding the early stages of the negotiations for the oil concession in Qatar, and the 1933 draft oil concessions (folios 120-125 and 248-268), with comments.

There are documents in Arabic, mainly letters to and from the Sheikh of Qatar. Some of the documents in the volume are marked as confidential.

Extent and format

1 volume (361 folios)

Arrangement

The documents in the volume are mostly arranged in chronological order. There are notes at the end of the volume, (folios 331-345). The file notes are arranged chronologically and refer to documents within the file; they give a brief description of the correspondence with reference numbers in red crayon, which refer back to that correspondence in the volume.

The numbering commences at the first folio with 1, 1A, 1B, 1C and 1D; then 2-47; 48 and 48A; 49-97; 98, 98A, 98B and 98C; 99-283; 284 and 284A; 285-308; 309 and 309A; 310-313; 314 and 314A; 315-337; 338 and 338A and terminates with 349, which is the last number given to the final folio of the volume.